Even Dodgers pitcher believes Roki Sasaki is serious about Blue Jays

The world has been waiting for Japanese pitcher Roki Sasaki to decide on where he will be signing, and it seems as though his decision could come at any moment. In recent days, he narrowed down his search to the Los Angeles Dodgers, Toronto Blue Jays, and San Diego Padres. With the Blue Jays acquiring extra bonus pool money on Friday (Jan. 17), it seems as though they're preparing to bring in the most coveted pitcher remaining on the market. Only the Padres have reportedly been eliminated from the three-team chase so far.

With that in mind, current Dodgers pitcher Tyler Glasnow mentioned in a recent interview that while he briefly spoke to Sasaki, he has heard that Sasaki likes the Blue Jays, making them serious contenders to sign him this offseason.

A decision seems imminent, and the Padres were reportedly informed they were out of the sweepstakes and that he wouldn't be signing with them on Friday, making Glasnow's comments even more interesting.

Roki Sasaki could be missing piece for Blue Jays

This will be the second time the Blue Jays are competing with the Dodgers for a coveted pitcher. The last time this happened, they just missed out on signing superstar two-way player Shohei Ohtani. This time around, they seem to be making the moves needed to get a deal done and are prepared to pivot if neccessary. However, if they're able to sign Sasaki, he could be the missing piece to the puzzle.

Sasaki, who is 23 years old, spent the 2024 season with the Chiba Lotte Marines of the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) league. He posted a 10-5 record with a 2.35 ERA adding 129 strikeouts through 111.0 innings pitched. He is expected to translate his star-studded skill level to MLB fairly quickly, and has the potential to become one of the best pitchers in Blue Jays history.

Bringing in someone like Sasaki would prove the Blue Jays are attempting to contend in the 2025 season and beyond, and they could use that signing to convince a couple of other players to join the team. Pete Alonso and Anthony Santander both remain free agents and have been connected to the Blue Jays this offseason, so if they see the team going all-in to try and make a push to contend this season, they could be further enticed to sign a deal to go to Toronto.

At the end of the day, it seems as though the Sasaki decision is just hours away. The Blue Jays have done what they can at this point to convince him to join their team, and now it's a waiting game.